PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT IN MIDDLE ADULTHOOD

Transcription

1 CHAPTER 16 PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT IN MIDDLE ADULTHOOD McGraw-Hill Dealing with the Stresses of Adulthood The General Adaptation (Selye) Alarm Reaction: Fight-or-Flight reaction Stage of Resistance Stage of Exhaustion Risk and Resilience Risk Factors: Stressors Resilience: Dealing well with stress Protective Factors: Characteristics of resilient individuals that protect them from stress 1

2 Marriage at Middle Age Midlife transition Emotional divorce Empty nest syndrome The happy marriage The unmarried individual The Unmarried Individual In the past, people have had negative attitudes toward the social characteristics of single people, appears to be growing more positive Little research has been conducted on single women, similar to married women ion various measures of adjustment Unmarried Latin and Asian women are often expected to care for family members. African American single women emphasize the importance of family members and friends in providing close relationships and support, socially and at work Sex and Love in Middle Adulthood Adulthood Minor physiological changes occur in both male and female sexual systems Sexuality at middle age has a relationship to depression 2

3 Levinson s Midlife Transition Settling Down Midlife Transition Young/Old Destruction/Creation Masculinity/Femininity Attachment/Separation Seasons of a Woman s Life: Levinson Gender Splitting The traditional marriage enterprise The gender revolution Erikson Stage 7: Generativity vs. Stagnation Generativity: To be useful to ourselves and to society People become aware of their mortality Concern shifts to the next generation Failure leads to stagnation and selfabsorption Stagnation: To be bored, self-indulgent, and unable to contribute to society s welfare 3

4 Personality A pattern of relatively permanent traits, dispositions or characteristics Provide some consistency to an individual s behavior Personality in a Cultural Context Culture: includes norms, ideas, values, beliefs, rules, & patterns of communication May influence the development of some personality traits more than others Influences the development of theory Personality in a Cultural Context Individualist cultures value competitiveness and self-reliance Collectivist cultures value interdependence and cooperation Also differences within cultures 4

5 Evolutionary Psychologists Others argue culture has little effect on personality See personality as the expression of biological traits Look for similarities across cultures Some argue personality is not restricted to humans Personality is the basis of culture, not vice versa History Dr. Hogan Persona: Theatrical Mask Personare: to sound through Hippocrates ( BC) Humors: fluids Choleric: yellow bile- quick tempered Sanguine: blood- warm, cheerful Phlegmatic: phlegm- sluggish, cool, calm Melancholic: black bile- gloomy, pensive (deep in thought) Trait & Type Theories of Personality Trait: Identify relatively stable aspects of personality that are inferred from behavior Related to Disposition How one behaves across situations and time Exist on a continuum (extremely shy, very shy, shy, slightly shy) A Type is a category or collection of related traits 5

6 Gordon Allport Viewed human personality as an evolving system of habits, attitudes, & traits Established an extensive catalogue of traits Allport s Personal Disposition Theory: Each person has a personal disposition, unique set of personality traits Three categories of traits 1. Cardinal traits So dominant a person s entire personality reflects the trait Not everyone has a cardinal trait Allport s Personal Disposition Theory 2. Central Traits Qualities that characterize daily interactions Most people have 5 to 10 central traits Pattern of traits is crucial Allport s Personal Disposition Theory 3. Secondary Traits Characteristics exhibited in specific situations More easily modified than central traits Not necessarily exhibited daily People have more secondary than central traits 6

7 Raymond Catell s Trait Theory Used mathematical procedure of Factor Analysis to show that groups of traits tend to cluster together Obvious, daily traits are Surface Traits: Described characteristic ways of behaving, clean, stubborn, orderliness Higher-order traits are Source Traits: Underlying traits from which surface traits are derived Personality Trait Theories The Five-Factor Model (McCrae & Costa) 1. Neuroticism (Emotional instability) Stability Worried calm, nervous at ease, insecure secure Anxiety, depression, impulsivity, vulnerability, angry hostility 2. Extraversion Introversion Social unsocial, talkative quiet, affectionate reserved Activity level, assertiveness, excitement seeking, positive emotions, warmth Personality Trait Theories 3. Openness to Experience Open closed, independent conforming, creative uncreative, daring timid Fantasy, aesthetics, feelings, actions, values 4. Agreeableness Forgiving and willing to comply Straight forwardness, trust, modesty, altruism, compliance 5. Conscientiousness Strong sense of purpose with high expectations Self-discipline, competence, order, achievement striving, deliberation 7

8 Personality Assessment Projective Tests Rely on the interpretation of people s responses to a standard set of ambiguous stimuli Rorschach Inkblot Test TAT Related to psychodynamic approaches to personality The Rorschach Inkblot Test Presented with 10 inkblots Asked what you see New scoring system has revived the popularity of this test Still seems to have little usefulness for diagnosing psychological problems The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) Presented with black and white pictures of people in ambiguous situations Asked to tell a story to describe the situation Lack of standardized scoring system Lack of consistency in information obtained 8

9 Personality Inventories Most widely used psychological tests, next to intelligence tests Consist of multiple choice or true false questions Different tests have emerged from the different theoretical approaches Well-constructed inventories are valid predictors of behavior Personality Inventories Inventories based on Trait theories Majority of personality inventories Sixteen Personality Factor Test (16 PF) Developed by Cattell Provides a score on each of his 16 personality factors Eysenck Personality Questionnaire - Measures each of Eysenck s three broad factors Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) One of the most widely used and researched Designed to detect abnormal behavior Scores significantly above normal may indicate psychopathology Not useful for most people interested in understanding their own personalities 9

10 Myers Briggs Type Inventory (MBTI) Based on Jung s theory Each person favors specific ways of dealing with and learning about the world Modalities Modalities define personality type Four dimensions Extraversion Introversion Sensing Intuition Thinking Feeling Judging Perceiving Myers Briggs Type Inventory (MBTI) Based on Jung s theory Each person favors specific ways of dealing with and learning about the world Modalities Modalities define personality type Four dimensions Extraversion Introversion Sensing Intuition Thinking Feeling Judging Perceiving Disturbances Defense Mechanisms Unconscious attempts by the ego to reduce anxiety from unacceptable sexual and aggressive drives Distort perceptions of reality Normal and universal reactions In extreme, may be unhealthy Helpful and generally harmless All have some element of repression 10

11 NT Obcessive Compulsive careers: logical precise, goal oriented, thinkers, inventors, college level teachers, designers, craftsmen, power is important. INTJ: obsessive- major defense emotional isolation symptoms: uncontrollable thoughts, paranoia, insomnia, general anxiety, nightmares ENTJ: compulsive- Major defense rituals (ongoing) symptoms: rituals (behaviors) INTP: inhibitor- Major defense- polarization (immobilization) symptoms: impotence ENTP: Phobic Major defense- displacement symptoms: phobic fears SJ Depressives Need for harmony & belonging, want to be part of a family, caretaker, systematic, concrete, dependable, good with conformity Careers: police lawyers, judges, teachers, military, religion, OBGYN doctor Depressive ISTJ: Neurasthenic depressive-major defense- I m tired ESTJ: Hypochondriac- major defense- I don t feel well ISFJ: Anxiety depressive- major defense- I m worried symptoms: anxious, agitated, nervous, restlessness, ESFJ: Melancholic- I m sorry symptoms-sad, shame, no hope guilt worthlessness NF Hysterics Social chameleons- take on he color of their surroundings. Hysterics-fake overreact, take on the color of their environment. Abstract philosophical, charismatic leaders, impatient with mundane details Careers: counselors religious workers, writes, character actors. INFJ: Cataleptoid-major defense-introjection INFP: Heboid-major defense dissociation ENFJ: Epiletoid-major defense repression ENFP: Paranoid major defense paranoid 11

12 SP Manic / Impulsive Hysterics, overreact, practical, concrete, impulsive, charming, avoid responsibility Careers: mechanics, athletics, truck drivers, weight lifters. ISFP: autistic personality: self mutilation, prostitution, masochism, tranvestism, shadowy, fetishism ESFP: narcotic personality: alcoholism, drug addition, overeating ESTP: sociopathic personality: robbery ISTP: perverse personality: assault, terrorism, rape sadism, vandalism, voyeurism, pyromania, necrophilia 12